Bullying Hub

Vanessa Tijerina-Arguelles posted the above photo of her 11-year-old son, Jesus "Jesse" Franco, on Facebook on Friday morning and marked it with the hashtag #NOH8.

Since being reposted by the NOH8 Campaign a few hours later, the photo has been shared more than 83,000 times on Facebook.

As you can see, Jesse is holding two signs saying although he's not gay, he's been the victim of anti-gay bullying at his school in Raymondville, Texas, near McAllen. School officials have refused to do anything to stop the bullying, and have in fact punished him for defending himself, according to Jesse's signs.

The signs read:

"HELLO! I'M JESUS (JESSE) FRANCO. I'M NOT GAY. STILL, I GET CALLED GAY AND FAGGOT AT MY SCHOOL EVERY DAY. RAYMONDVILLE (TX) INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT DOES NOTHING. MY PARENTS & I HAVE TRIED 2 GET THEM 2 DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. THE LAST TIME I WAS ATTACKED, I GOT 2 DAYS OUT OF SCHOOL SUSPENSION FOR OVERCOMING THE BULLY, DEFENDING MYSELF. PARENTS OF THESE KIDS ARE BULLIES 2. MAYBE THAT'S WHY THE SCHOOL DOESN'T ACT & THE KIDS(S) DON'T STOP? PLEASE SHARE SO OTHER KIDS, LIKE ME, CAN SEE THEY ARE NOT ALONE. THE SCHOOL MAY VIOLATE MY FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND MY RIGHT TO (SILENT) PROTEST; THEY HAVE GIVEN ME NO CHOICE, NO HELP. THANK YOU. NO H8."

Jesse's mom, Tijerina-Arguelles, wrote the following when she originally posted the photo:

"My son is 11 years old. His school district is in a community that is a pro-bully, anti-victim community in EVERY aspect. Where victims should be of a concern (law enforcement, government, school district), and be protected. The latest insult was a gay slur, a shouted gay-bashing during lunch in the cafeteria, followed by ooohs. With faculty present. My son has a learning disability, he was caught off guard and unable to react. The bully who did this is a notorious bully, his mom is a nortorius bully. Both the mother and her son have cyber-bullied and gay bashed my boy. Enough is enough."

Tijerina-Arguelles told Towleroad on Saturday that she took the photo and posted it as a last resort before Jesse, who's in sixth grade, left for school on Friday morning.

"It was not because he did not want to go; it was because he was afraid if he fought back that he would be punished again, and they wouldn't care that he was defending himself," Tijerina-Arguelles said. "He has a learning disability. He is actually extremely bright. He just has trouble socially and with new concepts and surprising circumstances, such as being bully-ambushed."

Tijerina-Arguelles said Jesse had asked why his bullies were using gay slurs. She explained it was because he's different and they make assumptions. That's when Jesse said there should be a campaign to protect people against anti-gay bullying.

"I said, 'Oh honey, there are many, some have been around forever. The newest one is NOH8. Have you heard of it?' ... I logged online and showed him the campaign. He said, 'I bet no one in Raymondville knows about that.' I said: 'I bet you're right. You want people to know about that?' He nodded. And voila! We made it happen. He got there [to school] and only one girl knew what it was about. Teachers asked him, 'Is that gang related?' He said, 'No, I support gays and their rights.' So proud of my boy. Others took out markers and followed suit."

Many of those who've commented and shared the photo say they plan to contact the Raymondville school superintendent. Here's his info should you choose to join them:

As a child, I was raped by a member of my own family. At that time I did not think of it as abuse. I kind of enjoyed it. I kept it to myself, not realizing how it had changed me. Growing up wasn't a pleasant experience. I was harassed, heckled, and ridiculed by classmates...After joining my present church, it came to me that this lifestyle was not right. It seemed that the more I tried to quit on my own, the more intense was the temptation. All last week I fasted and prayed. On this past Saturday at the Convocation, there was an alter call. I came forward and offered my testimony. It was unscripted.

If you are quick to mock Caldwell, or if the story is leaving a bad taste in your mouth, be sure to check out BET Entertainment Editor Clay Cane's take, over at HuffPo. It's an empathetic and sensitive reminder that in discussing this issue, we should use care. Says Cane:

I hope this boy is on suicide watch. The way he is being shamed in the public [and] in that church is heartbreaking to see...The bishop said he chose to do this. No he didn't. When you're brainwashed you're not choosing anything...He's doing what he thinks will make him feel loved and accepted in his community. The funny thing is, people are mocking it... but if he were 'more masculine,' people would take it seriously.

Caldwell's "conversion" took place at the Church of God in Christ’s 107th's Holy Convocation in St. Louis, Missouri. In a statement posted online, COGIC responded to the viral video:

We believe that we should reflect the love and compassion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in all that we do. We do not in any way compromise our biblical position against same sex unions or in favor of biblical teaching on matters of sexual conduct. At the same time we expect that our clergy and laity will be civil and considerate as they speak to men and women regarding issues related to our Christian faith. We love all people, regardless of their faith or moral standards. When we fail to express ourselves with love and humility we contradict our witness to the world.

Furthermore, the Church of God in Christ wholly condemns acts of violence against and the subjugation of any person to verbal or physical harassment on the basis of their sexual stance. Such actions violate entirely the Christian’s obligation to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

The Church of God in Christ will have no further comment on this matter.

A Virginia teen who spent nine days in the hospital after fighting back against his anti-gay bullies at high school is now being charged with assault, NBC 12 reports:

[Eric's mother Mary Martin] admits Eric threw the first punch, but she says he was a victim of bullying. She says he was constantly hit with gay slurs. The Martins are fighting back with the help of family advocate Tammy Motola.

"It's always the perpetrators that get away with the crime," said Motola. "When the victims have finally had enough, after being verbally attacked and bullied for years and they snap...they are the ones that are penalized."

Eric was initially prevented from coming back to any Henrico school until he signed a student threat documentation form over allegations he threatened the school.

Mary Martin refused to sign any documentation and launched a campaign called Letters for Eric in support of her son.

“The NABC opposes all forms of discrimination against any individual on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, sexual orientation or religion. There is no room for such actions in the sport of men's basketball.

“The NABC opposes any action or inaction that has a tendency to cause or is intended to cause emotional or physical harm, an unequal or disproportionate effect, or unreasonable requirement because of any particular trait. Further, the NABC opposes any behavior toward players that is offensive, abusive, belittling, intimidating or threatening.

“...most schools where our members coach have comprehensive anti-bullying policies and procedures, and we encourage anyone who feels that he or she has been a target of bullying to utilize these procedures. Our member coaches are always there to assist players who feel that they have been the targets of bullying.”

“To have the NABC put out such a powerful statement on inclusion shows the importance of the issue. I have been a member for over 15 years and the organization was so supportive with the concerns. So many coaches will receive the statement and I hope it continues to promote a change in athletics overall. It really makes me proud to be a member."

According to Bob Walsh, the new head men's basketball coach at the University of Maine, education around the area of homophobic discrimination and bullying is needed:

“Guys are generally unaware of maybe some hurtful comments or phrases that they use that they might consider mainstream. People are aware of something that's racially offensive, but they're less aware of how it affects [people who are gay]."

Walsh added that although he hears the word "faggot" regularly around basketball, he addresses it every time:

"It's an accepted insult that's considered funny by some people. I hear it a lot in team settings with males, and I immediately address it. I help them understand the connotation and the hurt in that word. I think that's where you start the conversation."

Although the policy has been criticised for its lack of inclusion of gender identity and expression, its hoped that these issues can be addressed in the future.

It's one of the oldest student pranks in the book: stick a sign on another kid's back that says "kick me" or some other phrase meant to humiliate.

But in a 2013 incident at Aldergrove Community Secondary School in Langley, British Columbia, the prank was played by a teacher. Daniel Mark Ogloff, a metal and machine shop teacher, placed a piece of masking tape on a student's back with the words "I'm gay" written on it, clearly intending to mock the student, The Province reports:

“Ogloff placed a piece of masking tape on the back of the jacket of a male Grade 11 student” with the words ‘I’m gay’ written on it, according to the report.

“Ogloff then gestured ‘shhh’ to the students after putting the tape on and pointed at another student and mouthed words to the effect, ‘It was him.’ ”

Students were laughing and taking photos.

“Ogloff considered this to be horseplay,” said the report.

Ogloff was suspended for 10 weeks for that incident and was ordered to participate in a “restorative action” with the student. He was also ordered to participate in mandatory mentorship with another teacher and to complete courses required by the district.

“Ogloff disputes the appropriateness of this discipline,” according to the report.

In the other incident, Ogloff in December 2012 “spoke inappropriately and disrespectfully” to a Grade 12 student who approached him in class to ask why she was the only student failing.

“Ogloff responded by saying words to the effect of ‘she wants to know why you’re passing and she’s not,’ in a loud voice,” adding, “‘you are never here and you don’t do anything in this class.’”

Last Friday, PepsiCo announced “Purple On!” campaign to support GLAAD’s October 16th annual Spirit Day, which inspires millions of Americans to wear purple to take a united stand against bullying and show support for LGBT youth, reports LGBT Weekly.

PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi [pictured right] said:

“PepsiCo is deeply committed to building a workplace environment where all of our associates can bring their whole selves to work and are empowered to reach their full potential. That’s why we are pleased to partner with GLAAD in support of Spirit Day, which fosters a spirit of inclusion in our communities."

As part of the campaign, PepsiCo is encouraging employees to wear purple on October 16th and to share GLAAD’s anti-bullying messages and resources.

Spirit Day coincides with the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network’s (GLSEN) “Ally Week." According to GLSEN’s 2011 National School Climate Survey, 63.5 percent of LGBT students reported feeling unsafe at school and 81.9 percent reported verbal harassment because of their sexual orientation.

Watch JJ Totah - Michael on Back in the Game - going purple for Spirit Day 2013, AFTER THE JUMP...